White balance is one of the principal camera settings or functions we need to understand in order to bring out the natural colors of the reef and our fishy friends. What is the white balance you ask? Well, in the most simple terms, white balance is a setting included on all digital cameras, usually indicated with a “WB”, which changes the overall color of the picture to accommodate different lighting environments. For example, a land photographer would change the white balance settings when they move from shooting in a sunny outdoor environment to an indoor environment lit entirely with fluorescent light. For us underwater shooters, we adjust the white balance to account for a loss in the red wavelength as we go deeper underwater. If you do not adjust your white balance your images will come back in shades of blue and green when they should be coming back with a full spectrum of colors. How do we correctly set our white balance? Let me explain. Underwater Auto Shooting Modes As I said, as we dive deeper underwater we start to lose certain colors, most importantly red. With this in mind, we need to try to account for this loss of red by utilizing our camera's built-in digital red filter, which is controlled through the white balance function. Many cameras like newer models of GoPro or the Olympus TG series—some of the most user-friendly cameras for snorkelers and divers—will have pretty fantastic auto-white balance settings for underwater shooters. For GoPro users, you'll just need to switch the white balance setting into Auto and just let the camera do its thing. In my experience, and from what I've seen from our guests using GoPros, the colors come back very accurate. For the Olympus TG folks, simply turn the little dial on
White balance is one of the principal camera settings or functions we need to understand in order to bring out the natural colors of the reef and our fishy friends. What is the white balance you ask? Well, in the most simple terms, white balance is a setting included on all digital cameras, usually indicated
What are you going to see on one of our snorkeling safaris? Short answer, a ton! Long answer, the specific things you can expect to see can be region and location-dependent. Here's a quick breakdown of what you can expect to see in some of our most popular snorkeling safari destinations. Please note that this is a very small list featuring some of the most popular species, there is so much more to see for each location! Coral Triangle Staples *This list of creatures can be expected for just about all of our snorkeling safaris taking place in the Coral Triangle (Indonesia, Philippines, Palau). Many different types of anemones and anemonefish Pristine hard and soft coral reefs Many species of lionfish and scorpionfish Many different species of angelfish Tons of different species of colorful reef fish Porcupinefish and many different species of pufferfish Blue-spotted stingrays Nudibranchs Many different types of sea stars Moray eels Raja Ampat and Komodo- Indonesia Manta rays Big schools of big fish Mangroves Green and hawksbill sea turtles Cuttlefish, octopus, squid Reef sharks Napoleon wrasse Bumphead parrotfish Alor- Indonesia Some larger schools of big fish Mandarine fish Hawksbill sea turtles Cuttlefish, octopus, squid Mola mola (depends on tide, current, and moon phase) Friendly local fishermen freediving with homemade wood goggles as they spearfish with handmade spears North Sulawesi and Wakatobi- Indonesia Hawksbill and green sea turtles Sea snakes Crocodile fish Some schooling fish Cuttlefish, octopus, squid Philippines Some smaller schools of big fish Sea snakes Hawksbill and green sea turtles Whale shark (not to be expected but it's possible) Mandarine fish Cuttlefish, octopus, squid Frogfish Palau Manta rays Reef sharks Napoleon wrasse Bumphead parrotfish Some bigger schools of fish Cuttlefish, octopus, squid Hawksbill and green sea turtles Caribbean Some smaller schools of big fish Tons of
What are you going to see on one of our snorkeling safaris? Short answer, a ton! Long answer, the specific things you can expect to see can be region and location-dependent. Here’s a quick breakdown of what you can expect to see in some of our most popular snorkeling safari destinations. Please note that this
Deciding to just rent snorkeling gear versus bringing your own gear on a snorkeling safari can have its benefits, such as keeping your luggage weight/cost down. However, it can also have its disadvantages as not all snorkel and dive centers will have the exact sizes you may need. Packing your own snorkeling gear can add to your overall luggage weight, but it can also make life easier and more comfortable when you arrive as you have the added assurance that every piece of equipment fits here. Here's a little pros and cons list—as well as our opinion—for those of you having a difficult time deciding on whether you should pack your own snorkeling gear or rent. Renting Gear Pro: Traveling light Con: No guarantee the rental equipment will fit perfectly. Pro: No need to wash or maintain equipment on tour. Con: Rental equipment may be quite used and not in the best shape. Pro: No need for pre-trip shopping. Con: Who used this wetsuit last and why does it smell a bit funky? Bringing Your Own Gear Pro: No need to need to worry about trying on gear at each location. Con: Your luggage might be a bit heavier or bulkier. Pro: If you've spent time sizing your equipment correctly, you know it will fit. Con: You'll have to spend the time researching equipment and sizing it correctly. Pro: You know who had that snorkel in their mouth last...you! Con: You'll have to pack and maintain/wash/dry your equipment at each location. As you can see there are a lot of valid arguments to be made for each case, however, after years of running snorkeling safaris with guests both bringing their own gear and guests renting, we can honestly say that bringing your own is the preferred choice of our guests.
Deciding to just rent snorkeling gear versus bringing your own gear on a snorkeling safari can have its benefits, such as keeping your luggage weight/cost down. However, it can also have its disadvantages as not all snorkel and dive centers will have the exact sizes you may need. Packing your own snorkeling gear can add
So, you're thinking about joining a snorkeling safari but not quite sure you want to spend your hard end holiday time traveling around with a group of people you've never met before. What's the group dynamic going to be like? I'm traveling alone so will I have to share a room with a stranger? Will we have to eat together at every meal? will we have to wear matching group outfits and travel behind someone carrying a big sign above their head!? These are all very valid questions, particularly the last one, and let me just quickly say that we would never put you into matching outfits and make you march through the domestic terminal in single file. To ease some of your very valid group traveling concerns here's a little info on what it's like to be apart of one of our group snorkeling safaris. The Group Dynamic As someone who's been leading snorkeling safaris for Snorkel Venture since they first started, I can honestly say that every tour I've been on the general group dynamic is one of fun and excitement. I believe the reason we consistently receive such lively and easy-going groups of people is that our tours cater to a specific type of people, those that love to snorkel. If you jump on a group tour to Italy for example, you'll have a very different dynamic as everyone within the group has a different idea of how they want to see Rome or Venice. One person might want to rush and see every site imaginable while another might want to casually take in the sites as they sit in front of a cafe with an espresso. These contradictions in personal choice are likely to upset the general group dynamic. This is not the case with our
So, you’re thinking about joining a snorkeling safari but not quite sure you want to spend your hard end holiday time traveling around with a group of people you’ve never met before. What’s the group dynamic going to be like? I’m traveling alone so will I have to share a room with a stranger? Will
We have a huge variety of snorkel safaris on our website, with each one offering something unique. Some are resort-based, while for others we charter an entire liveaboard. On some, we combine multiple resorts and liveaboards into one epic trip. Some are centered around reef snorkeling, while on other tours we spend the majority of our time in the open ocean looking for pelagic species. Some are in Asia and others are in South America. If you are new to snorkeling safaris or the destinations, it can be a little confusing choosing the right snorkel safari for you. Here's a little guide to help you decide. Liveaboard or Resort This is one of the most important decisions to make in our opinion. If you know you are prone to seasickness or just really want to have more space to move around, then a resort might be more enjoyable for you. If you want to have the opportunity to venture a bit further into the region and just love the idea of falling asleep and waking up at sea on a luxury yacht, a liveaboard may be right for you. One Destination or Multiple We have quite a few different combination trips, like Alor-Komodo, or North Sulawesi-Raja Ampat, or even our Epic Indonesia tour which stops at five different locations over the better part of a month. If you just don't want to miss anything and don't mind the extra travel involved, then joining one of these combination tours may be a wise choice. For these tours the average time at each location will be 4-6 nights with a day of travel in between. Just keep in mind there will be a bit more packing and unpacking as well as additional time spent flying between locations. If you really just want
We have a huge variety of snorkel safaris on our website, with each one offering something unique. Some are resort-based, while for others we charter an entire liveaboard. On some, we combine multiple resorts and liveaboards into one epic trip. Some are centered around reef snorkeling, while on other tours we spend the majority of
